Structural toy locomotive and the like



June 30, 1931. R. H. SHEPARD 9 STRUCTURAL TOY LOCOMOTIVE AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. 23, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 "I h 1 446 W"! a WW" 0 H" 5 o I 0 6'0 45 64 65 2e 37 6 f 4a 45 e4 67 J7 ATTORNEY June 30, 1931. R. H. SHEPARD 1,812,493

STRUCTURAL TOY LOCOMOTIVE AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. 23, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY I C ATTORNEY Patented June 30, 1931 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE RALPH H. SHEPARD, 0F BRONXVILLE, NEW YORK STRUCTURAL TOY LOCOMOTIVE AND THE LIKE Application filed. January 23, 1928. Serial No. 248,663.

which differ principally in the size and arrangement of their wheels but also in certain other respects.

Another object is to provide such a structural toy of .standard parts, which canbe easily assembled by an amateur or a child "and'as'easily disassembled and altered.

All these and other objects, as suggested 7 below, are attained in the method and means now to be described, and illustrated in the' accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevational vlew of the invention adapted to a standard locomotive of the type known as 260; Fig. 2, a similar 'view of a locomotive type known as 46-0; Fig. 3, acsimilar View of the loco-- motive type known as 46-2;' Fig. 4, a

sectional view through a vertical longitudiwith its trailing truck Fig. 7, a sectional view through the vertical transverse plane 7-7 of F 4; Fig. 8, a similar sectional view of the locomotive through plane 8-8 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 9, a semi-front elevational view of the ,locomotiveshownin Fig. 4; Fig. 10, a detail of the frame end when the locomotive is of 'a'type built up with the use of small drivers;

and Fig. 11, a similar view of a. frame end when used on a locomotive of the type with large drivers, as shown in Fig. 3. v

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

' The boiler .of each locomotive type is made rangedend to end, to form the complete up of. ajp'l-urality of courses or sections arboiler, these sections including a tapered middle course 20, Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive, a short rear course 21, Figs. 1 and 2, or a long rear course 22, Figs. 3 and 4, and a short or long course 23, Figs. 3 and 4.

Each of these courses is slotted at the bottom to receive boiler support tongues 24, which are shown in elevation in Figs. 1 and 2, in section in Fig. 4, and in perspective in the mating frame detail shown in Fig. 5.

The several boiler courses are also fitted to each other and to the smoke box section 25, and to the fire box section 26, by means, for instance, of bell-and-spigot joints 27. This latter joint may be of the type stated, or of 3 some other standard type of connecting joint.

All of these main parts of the locomotive superstructure are further held together by being fitted with hand-rail stanchions 28,

through which continuous hand-rails 29 are inserted from the front end.

The cab 30 is positioned over the rear end of the fire-box section 26, as shown in section in Fig. 4, and butts against projections 31 on the latter to prevent it from sliding thus attaching together in a quick detachable manner, the cab 30, firebox 26, two or more of the boiler sections 20, 21, 22, and 23, and the smoke box 25.

The cylinder saddle 70, Figs. 4 and 8, is permanently attached to the bottom of the smoke box 25, and is relieved or cut away on each side to receive the end of the pilot frame 35 and of the main frame 36, which frames are separate from each other. The cylinder and valve chest parts, arranged in one unit 37, Figs. 1, 2, and 8, are then fitted on the outside to the frame ends, and then pinned or screwed through each end, to the cylinder saddle 70.

The pin or screw holes 38, Figs. 8, 10, and 11 through the front ends of the different main frames, 36, as well as their top surfaces 39, are at a uniform height above the rails 40, on which the completely-assembled toy locomotive runs. This serves to locate which the wheels 43, axles 44, and trucks 45,-

Fig. 4, are permanently attached. These several frame sections 36 are keyed together at their ends as shown at 46, Fig. 5, and the main and extension frames have butt support tongues 24, Figs. 4 and 5,which enter the slot 47, Fig. 4, in the boiler belly 48 which is the bottom portion of the boiler section, and also butt. outside of these'slots. A pin 49, Figs. 4 and 7 which can pass in through the fire dooropening 50, Fig. 6, passes through holes 51, Fig. 7, in the boiler support tongues 24, inside of the boiler, thus holding the main and the extension frame sections at a fixed height against the boiler 48. 7

Each rearor end frame section has two resilient tongues, 52, Fig. 4, which fit up in- I side the fire box 53, at each end, there being no grate to interfere. When the end frame is pushed up into place, the front-tongue 52, Fig. 4, snaps over the head 54, of the pin 49, above-mentioned, and holds it in place; and the rear tongue 68, snaps into the fire door opening 50, in the back head, and also over a lip 55, on the cab floor, as shown, thus holding the cab 30 down.

, A tongue 57 extending downwardly from the cab bracket 58, is held forward by the rear portion 59v of the end frame, each frame section being keyed together as mentioned above.

Side rods 60, Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 7, serve tov connect the driving wheels, which are assembled permanently on the different frame sections, being attached by removable crank pins, or screws 62 and bushings 63. The main rods, 64, Figs. 1, 2, 3, inclusive, areattached to the cross heads 65 in the same manner. Crossheads 65,'guides 66, and piston rods 67 are permanently attached to the cylinders, the front ends of the rods being bent or upset within the cylinders to prevent the cross heads from running out of the guides. The guides fit into yokes 68,

Fig. 5, which are permanently attached to the main frame section.

; In the type shown in Fig. 3, using fourwheel leading trucks, these. trucks are at tached to the cylinder saddle 70, by a pin, or a screw and bushing, similar to the fasten ing previously described, allowance being, made for'swing and lateral movement. The

same'pin or screw and bushing can be used to support the front end of a two-wheel leading truck, which when used, swivels from a pin.

or bushing attached to the main frame. Trailing trucks, when used, as in the type shown in Figs. 3 and 4, may be permanently attached to swivels on 'the proper type of end frame section.

The boiler top mountings, such as the bell, sand chest, steam dome, and safety valve casing, are provided with-keys like'T heads, which fit in a groove of similar form on the top of each boiler course or section. Thus these mountings may be arranged in any orderor assortment, before the boiler courses are assembled. :i

This invention, by the simple means described and illustrated, permits the ready assemblage of difierent standardparts, to form locomotives of different kinds or types, including changes in the number or size of driving wheels, leading and; following trucks, boiler sections or courses, as well as changes in the design and arrangement of the accessories, such as the boiler. mountings. An almost infinite variety'of such combinations can be devised, not only to{.cover every type of standard locomotive, but permitting the design of radically new and different combinations or types. Note ffor instance, the altered arrangement of mountings in boiler course 20, shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

It is to be understood thatfthe present dis closure is for the purpose of illustration only, and that the invention is not limited thereto- To those skilled in the art, many modifications of the invention will be readily apparent,and it will also be obviousto such skilled persons that parts of the devicemay be used without other parts thereof, and steps in the method, without other steps, many such combinations readily suggesting themselves. Therefore, it should be and is to be distinctly understood that fora definition of the limitations of the invention,'reference must be had to the appended claims.

Having now described the invention, what is claimed as new, and for which Letters Patent of the United States is desired, is:

1. In a toy locomotive, a plurality of typical boiler sections,means for mounting them endto endon a, supporting frame, and means for detachably connecting them together and to the frame.

2. The method of erecting toy locomotives of different types, including the stepof assembling the boiler in sections, supporting one or more of said sections on a frame, I mounting the driversand trucks 1n difierent typical arrangementsto said, frame,'and fastening the various parts together in a quick detachable manner.

3. In a toy locomotive, a main supporting'i 7 frame mountingthe wheels and boiler, and

comprising a plurality of sections detachably held together at their ends by a joint which permits their separation vertically.

4. A mounting. r. e le e tio a 59y locomotive, including slots in the bottom of each boiler section, and tongues for the slots and properly spaced and projecting upwardly from a common frame member.

5. A knock-down locomotive, including a smoke box section, a fire box section, and a plurality of boiler sections, all held together at their ends by means of bell and spigot joints.

6. In a knock-down toy locomotive, having a plurality of standard sections, means for detachably securing them together, including a stanchion on each side of each section and a common hand rail passing therethrough, and securing the end sections.

7. In a toy locomotive, a firebox section and a cab section positioned over the rear thereof, its forward end butting against projections in the rear of the firebox section, to prevent the cab from sliding forwardly.

8. The invention as in claim 7, including a hand-rail secured to the cab section, and adapted to retain the cab and firebox section in quick detachable relation.

9. In combination with the main supporting frames of a knock-down toy locomotive including driving wheels of two different diameters, means for supporting the locomotive at a uniform height above its rails, regardless of which diameter of driving wheels is used, said means including notched frame ends so arranged that reversing their posi tion will compensate for the difference in diameter of the two sizes of driving wheels.

10. The combination in a toy locomotive, of a main supporting frame having a plurality of quick-detachable sections, the wheels, axles and trucks of the locomotive being permanently attached to said sections.

11. In combination in a device of the character described, a pin member, a fire door opening, a plurality of boiler sections, the pin member passing through said opening and said sections and through holes in projecting tongues, a main supporting frame to which said tongues are attached, and adapted to retain the frame sections at a fixed height against the boiler sections.

12. The combination as in claim 11, the end frame section having a resilient tongue member adapted when the end frame is pushed into position to snap over the head of the pin to be retained in place thereon.

13. Means for attaching the boiler top 5 mountings to a toy locomotive, including a groove in each boiler section, and a T-shaped key projecting downwardly from each mounting, and adapted to be slidably held in the groove.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 19th day of January, A. D. 1928.

RALPH H. SHEPARD. 

